UPDATE 1-Dealers lobby Congress for help with GM, Chrysler
* Auto dealers press House/Senate members
* Dealers plan Thursday meeting with autos task force (Adds dealers to meet task force Thursday)
WASHINGTON, May 13 (Reuters) - Auto dealers lobbied Congress on Wednesday to try to slow plans by General Motors Corp GM.N and Chrysler LLC to cut their ranks.
"A rapid cut of dealers is a bad idea," John McEleney, chairman of the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA), said in a statement.
McEleney said his organization does not oppose dealer consolidation but believes the administration and the companies are moving too fast.
GM wants to cut its dealer network to 3,605 from 6,246. Chrysler's plan remains under wraps.
The industry group is asking members of the House and Senate in select meetings to intervene with the Obama administration's autos task force on planned reductions.
The White House/Treasury task force is driving the restructuring of both companies, which are planning to close plants, cut jobs and restructure dealer lineups to establish viability.
Dealers plan to meet with task force members on Thursday, McEleney said. (Reporting by John Crawley, editing by Leslie Gevirtz and Matthew Lewis)
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